The Victorian Era, beginning from 1837 to 1901, celebrated music as an art form and as entertainment. However, Britain never produced a composer noteworthy enough to reach Mozart or Beethoven talent or fame (Solie 101). Though Britain leaned towards the art side (paintings, drawings, etc.), they were concerned of their lack of musical talent being produced, according to Frederick Crowest (101-102), . This is more of a shock because London was a center that attracted international musicians and composers and made frequent returns. Additionally, the Victorian aesthetic welcomed new musicians because of Britain's fondness for foreign composers and they encouraged the youth to participate and learn how to play and compose music (102). Music was being spent as both leisure and public space (109). Despite music not being Britain's strongest points, music was an essential aspect to the Victorian aesthetic. It was frequently one of Britain's main interests as entertainment through its integration in education, music festivals, and demand for more music sheets, teachers, and pianos (105-106). They may have not been able to produce an 'English Beethoven' but it does not prevent Victorians from appreciating it for all its qualities.

          There was a clear divide between what was considered appropriate in between higher, middle, and lower classes. There were distinct institutions that separated the audience by their economic status: music halls and operas. Music halls were places for variety entertainment ranging from singing popular tunes and theatrical performances (Duvall 181). It was also a place for drinking low-priced alcohol with other citizens within the community (Kennedy). It has garnered the reputation of appealing to only the lower classes and as a place for moral degradation and detrimental to the working class (Duvall 181). On the other hand, operas were for middle class to upper class entertainment (Solie 110). Operas appealed to middle and upper class citizens because of their sophisticated and complex connotations.

          Charles Willeby was an author who wrote about the careers and works of composers of their work by the public. His contribution to The Yellow Book was “The Composer of 'Carmen'”, a biography of Georges Bizet. This text is a posthumous appreciation because he was unfortunately overlooked during his career. It discusses childhood, background in music, their career path, and the reception of his compositions. His most notable contribution was “Carmen” which was too complex and demanding for the audience which resulted in an outrage despite running through forty-eight performances. “Carmen” was praised for its strong characterization, tense drama, rich literature, and opening a new genre of realistic opera. The text's placement in The Yellow Book can be understood as shedding light on an overlooked composer because of the avant-garde qualities of his work. Since “Carmen” was revolutionary for its time, a text about the composer would interest the upper and middle class because they were the ones watching operas and suit The Yellow Book because it was avant-garde. It can also be assumed Lane used the text for controversy because of its initial reception. The title does not say 'Georges Bizet' but instead uses “The Composer of 'Carmen'” to draw in the readers through “Carmen” because of its popularity and infamy. Knowing that Lane wanted to change what was popular, it can be concluded that the inclusion of this text was to convince the audience to reevaluate their opinions of “Carmen”. The text was used to incite controversy to make light of a neglected and artistic composer in a positive manner for the avant-garde value.

          One of Sickert's interests in painting were the strange angles of music halls (Hopkins). His painting “The Lion Comique” features a lion comique paused in action whilst two violinists appear in the foreground. According to William Rough's analysis of Sickert's “Little Dot Hetherington”, Sickert was interested in the duality and artificiality of music halls. In this painting, he explores the relationship between the singer and the audience and notes the implied mirrors for duality. Since “The Lion Comique” was situated in a music hall, it can be assumed that Sickert intended to analyze the duality of the lion comique and the musicians. The irony of the painting is that upper class men were expected to be sophisticated which contrasts with the seriousness of the musicians because they are not a parody of anything. He might be criticizing the artificiality of upper class men through the lion comique because they are portrayed as womanizing and drinking-obsessed figures as opposed to their assumed cultured attitude. Sickert may be noting the performance versus reality concept through these contrasts of seriousness and parodies to blur the line between the two. The most important aspect is that Sickert introduces an artistic and avant-garde angle to music halls. They were also popular literary analysis by authors such as T. S. Eliot and G. H. Mair (Duvall 181); one being the social awkwardness of musicians whom were praised, but were unsure of what economic class they belonged in. The Yellow Book was intended to bring avant-garde to the masses and music halls were not seen as such, proving their artistic and literary value.